Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019 - Assessing the customer experience provided by 10 UAE online grocers and two marketplaces - Practicology
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Dubai Online Grocery
Report 2019
Assessing the customer experience provided by 10
UAE online grocers and two marketplaces.
1
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Contents
P3 – Introduction P13 – Completing an order
P4 – Executive summary P15 – Customer retention
P6 – Methodology P16 – Customer service
P7 – Key benchmarks P17 – Delivery service
P8 – Product search P18 – Delivery experience
P9 – Search results P19 – Marketplaces
P10 – Product details pages P20 – Recommendations
P12 – Product ratings and reviews P21 – Performance matrix
2
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Introduction
The UAE online grocery market is becoming increasingly crowded.
Many of our retail clients own grocery brands in the region, and
established players compete for customers with smartphone enabled
convenient shopping platforms and even online marketplace giants.
Consumers demand a simple and streamlined experience when
shopping online for groceries. We wanted our research to provide a
holistic view of what a great online proposition looks like. So, we
have reviewed the online customer journey, repeat order
functionality, delivery service and customer support offering of 10
grocers and 2 online marketplaces.
For each grocer, we followed a typical customer journey through searching for items, completing
checkout, raising customer support enquiries and placing test orders for delivery. The results prove
that there is still significant room for improvement in the market to achieve the high levels of
customer experience that online grocers have achieved in other markets.
This report will provide you with a thorough overview of the experience provided by online grocers in
Dubai including best practice examples, common pitfalls and key industry benchmarks that will help
inform your ongoing customer experience strategy.
David Quaife – Managing Director MENA
For more information on our services email us at hello@practicology.com 3
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Executive summary
We conducted research on 10 Dubai online The criteria chosen in this report is based on the
grocers (selling frozen and fresh produce) and best practices found in the UK market. In fact, UK
two online marketplaces (not selling frozen and online grocer Ocado scored 80% against the
fresh produce) to assess the standard of service criteria - the highest scoring Dubai equivalent
they provided their customers. achieved 51%.
To recognise that online grocery shoppers The UK has the most mature online grocery
frequently use multiple devices when completing market in the world with an annual value of
a transaction, all website evaluations were carried £10.5billion in 2016 (IGD) and with 28% of
out using mobile devices but checkout was consumers using this channel (Statista).
completed using desktop. The commentary in the
report replicates this typical customer journey. The research revealed that, although the grocers
are well positioned to succeed in the growing
Two online marketplaces are also included in our online market, there are significant areas for
research, though we analysed their performances improvement if they are to match the service
separately. Souq and Noon are looking to take provided to grocery customers in other markets,
market share in the region and already offer a such as the UK.
competitive range of store cupboard items. With
Souq’s owner Amazon providing its Prime Online marketplaces Souq and Noon must also
customers with the full range of grocery services significantly shift their grocery offering and
in other markets, it may not be long before proposition if they choose to match their online
Amazon Fresh and Pantry reach the GCC region. grocery competitors in the future.
4
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Executive summary
Key findings include: Online Grocers
• Limited product details: Product details provided by
Aswaaq
the grocers is very limited. 30% show some dietary
information and 20% show some lifespan guidance. But no Carrefour
grocer provided thorough details.
Choithrams
• Restricted search: Search is key for online grocery. Yet, El Grocer
few grocers allowed customers to sort or filter results by
customer rating (20%), dietary requirements (10%), Instashop
product use-by dates (0%) and price per grams (0%)
Kibsons
• Payment options: Cash on delivery is a very popular Lulu
payment option in the UAE. But only 50% of grocers
offered both online and offline payment methods. Quality Food
Supermart
• Customer service: Despite its importance, 70% of
grocers did not offer Live Chat and 40% failed to reply to Trolley
an email enquiry.
Online Marketplaces
• Convenient delivery: Though 90% of grocers offered Noon
next day delivery and 100% offered same day delivery, only
30% allowed customers to book hourly delivery slots. Souq
The report was researched and compiled by Sam Gaunt, Jordan Otty and David Quaife. 5
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Methodology
In late 2018, we assessed the customer experience offered by 10 Dubai-based online grocers and two
online marketplaces. Our researchers began the customer journey on a mobile device before completing
checkout on a desktop. A test order was also placed for each grocer and marketplace and the delivery
service was assessed. Each grocer and marketplace was scored against the below criteria that aimed to
capture the full omnichannel shopping experience. The statistics used throughout the report are
compiled using only the data from the 10 online grocers and excluding online marketplace data.
Account creation: How easy Favourites: How easy is it to Payment methods: What
is it to create an account? add favourite items/previous payment options are available?
purchases to the basket?
Product details pages: Do Customer service: How well
grocers provide nutritional Search functionality: Does do grocers deal with customer
information, product lifespans, the site use typeahead search service enquiries across Live
linked offers and customer and/or multi-search? Chat and email?
ratings and reviews?
Search results: Can search Fulfilment: What delivery
Loyalty scheme: Can results be filtered by rating, options are available, what is
customers join a loyalty scheme dietary requirements, price per the price, and how frequent are
or receive premium benefits? grams and lifespan? delivery timeslots?
Onsite content: Is there Checkout: How clear and Delivery service: We placed
additional recipe content that simple is the checkout process an order and scored the delivery
allows customers to add and does it include product service on branding, packed
products to the basket? reminders? product separation, helpfulness
of driver and punctuality. 6
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Key benchmarks
30% show some nutritional
20% 10%
information
? 20% show some product lifespan
information user can refine
search results by
customer rating
user can refine search
results by dietary
requirements
0% show thorough product lifespan or
nutritional information
offer immediate
Delivery slot options
70% 30%
delivery only respond to email
enquiries within one
10% offer free delivery
hour
above an order value
30% threshold*
30%
offer one hour
delivery time slots
20%
* to all areas of Dubai encourage social
offer delivery time media use for
slots of 2+ hours customer support
30%
offer 2 hour delivery
time slots
50% 20%
offer both online and provide a responsive
offline payment helpful Live Chat
methods service
7
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Product search
To begin the shopping journey, it was important to first assess the
onsite search functionality of each website. This is especially important
for online grocery websites. Data reveals that 63% of UK consumers that
shop for groceries online use site search (IGD). This compares to an
average of 30% (Econsultancy) for other retail websites.
Best practice dictates that onsite search fields should be easy for users
to spot, have a strong tolerance for spelling errors and should assist
customers with relevant and intuitive autocomplete functionality.
Grocers can also use the data from onsite search to gain more insight
and understanding into customer behaviour and demands.
The grocers in our report generally performed well in this area, with
70% providing predictive autocomplete functionality in the onsite
search. Trolley.ae (pictured) offered the best example of this, displaying
product images and easy add to basket buttons in the suggested search
results.
El Grocer offered the poorest search experience. When typing, a
‘trending searches’ pop up covers the search box, preventing the user
from completing their search. This removes a vital piece of functionality
for online grocery shoppers.
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Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Search results
As onsite search is used far more frequently on online grocery websites compared to other types of retail
websites, it is also essential for grocers to refine their search results pages.
Search results pages should prioritise relevant results, provide clear product imagery and details, and
allow customers to sort and refine the results in intuitive ways. Sorting and filtering results is an even
more important feature for mobile users, as scrolling through large quantities of results on a mobile
device is a poor user experience.
Although simple options were offered (alphabetical, price, etc), the online grocers in our research
generally performed particularly poorly against our full criteria.
20% 10% 0% 0%
user can refine results user can refine results
user can refine results user can refine results
by customer rating by dietary
by product lifespan by price per grams
requirements
More sophisticated search refinement options were unavailable. Priorities for online grocery customers
(customer ratings, dietary requirements and product lifespan) were largely ignored, and users are unable
to quickly narrow down their search based upon key preferences. This stalls the customer journey
providing an unsatisfactory experience for the customer.
9
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Product details pages
With a generally low average item value and a large number of items per
order, online grocers make it easy for customers to add products to their
basket directly from search results pages.
Because of this, product details pages (PDPs) must add value to
encourage conversions, providing important additional information at a
key stage in the customer journey and acting as landing pages when
reached directly from a search engine.
PDPs should showcase quality product imagery, provide nutritional and
dietary details, and indicate product use-by dates – especially for fresh
produce.
There is substantial room for improvement among Dubai online grocers
in this area. Firstly, our research revealed that 20% of grocers did not
have product details pages at all, only allowing customers to add items
to the basket from search results and not providing any additional
product information.
30% of grocers provided nutritional and allergen information on some
PDPs and 20% indicated product lifespan on some PDPs. But, no
grocer showcased consistent, detailed information across all PDPs.
Supermart (pictured) is an example of the very limited amount of
information provided by many retailers across PDPs. 10Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Product details pages
UK online grocer, Ocado, provides a best practice example of the level of detail grocery customers
demand from a product details page.
Image 1 shows clear guaranteed and average lifespans for a fresh product above the fold. Images 2, 3 and
4 illustrate the detailed product descriptions and ingredients that call out potential allergens in bold.
1 2 3 4 11Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Product ratings and reviews
The benefits of including ratings and reviews are numerous, boosting
sales, limiting workload for customer service teams, reducing returns,
improving SEO and even informing product development.
Social validation is a key driver for consumers, and many customers rely
on ratings and reviews to make a purchasing decision. In fact, 41% of
consumers are influenced by customer reviews and 40% are influenced
by average customer ratings on UK grocery websites (IGD).
Our research revealed that 60% of the grocers analysed incorporate
ratings and review functionality. Yet, very few reviews or ratings had
been left by customers on any of the websites. Even a relatively small
amount of product reviews can make a difference to the conversion rate
of a PDP. Research indicates that products with as little as five reviews
have a 270% higher purchase likelihood than a product with zero
reviews (Spiegel Research Centre).
Grocers should encourage customers to leave reviews by sending follow
up emails after recent purchases, offering rewards, and making the
process as convenient and straightforward as possible.
UK online grocer Ocado offers an example of best practice in this area.
The rating score is immediately visible on the PDP and clicking to open
a tab reveals a breakdown of scoring and a selection of helpful reviews. 12Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Completing an order
Once a customer reaches checkout, it is vital that
online grocers make it as simple as possible to
complete the purchase. This includes streamlining the
process, providing convenient delivery options, and
offering relevant payment types.
Online grocers can encourage customers to complete
their transactions by enclosing the checkout. This
involves removing any distracting navigational
elements from the website.
40% of grocers in our research used an enclosed
checkout. Carrefour’s checkout (pictured) illustrates
the effect of this with a pared back checkout that allows
customers to focus on each stage of the process while
keeping a visible order summary throughout.
The checkout can also be a good opportunity for online grocers to remind customers of incomplete multi-
buy bundles, alert users to missing “favourited” items, and promote special offers. As long as these stages
at checkout are clearly signposted, this can drive revenue.
Despite this, only 30% of Dubai online grocers promoted recommended products at checkout and none
notified customers about items from their favourites list or from previous orders that were missing.
13Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Completing an order
A key reason for shopping for groceries online is the convenience
and flexibility it offers. As a result, modern consumers expect
online grocers to deliver their orders at suitable times -
Delivery slot options
scheduling around work hours and social activities.
offer immediate
delivery only
To keep pace with this demand, grocers should aim to offer their
customers precise hourly time slots to choose from. Our research
10% revealed that 30% of grocers offer this high level of convenient
30%
fulfilment, while 30% offer delivery time slots of over 2 hours. If
offer one hour
delivery time slots customers cannot find a convenient delivery option, they are
30% more at risk of abandoning their basket.
offer delivery time
slots of 2+ hours Providing a range of appropriate payment methods is essential
30% and 42% of online shoppers list this as an influential factor when
offer 2 hour delivery choosing who to shop with. Cash/card on delivery remains very
time slots popular in the UAE with 75% of consumers preferring this
method (Go-Gulf). However, to reduce checkout abandonment,
grocers should offer both online and offline payments.
For grocers offering a variety of time slot lengths,
the longest time slot was used. Our research revealed that 50% of grocers catered for all
preferences, offering online and offline payments. Yet, 40% only
offered cash/card on delivery and 10% required an online
payment, neglecting consumer preferences.
14Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Customer retention
Once a first order has been completed, it is important that online
grocers incentivise customers to shop with them again and make the
time invested in competing that first order worthwhile.
In our research, 100% of grocers offered a record of previous orders or a
“favourites” list, that allow customers to add multiple items to their
basket in one click. One example of how Dubai grocers could improve
on this further comes from UK grocer Ocado. It invites customers to
select their regular items to be automatically re-added to their basket on
a weekly, two-weekly, monthly or two-monthly basis.
30% of grocers also encouraged customers to browse their site by
providing free-to-access recipes that feature products available for
purchase online.
Choithrams excelled in this area. The catalogue of recipes was quick to
find in the site navigation and instructions were clear and easy to read
on a mobile device. Choithrams was also the only grocer in our research
that allowed users to click to add items to their basket, or simply buy all
the ingredients used in the recipe.
15Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Customer Service
For many of the Dubai grocers in our research, information
about ingredients (including allergens) and product lifespans on
Customer service email enquiry PDPs was limited. As a result, customers are more likely to seek
response time answers through customer service channels instead.
did not offer
email support
In these circumstances, customers demand support that is
convenient, quick and personal; with 68% of consumers willing
10% to pay more for products from a company with strong record of
30% customer service (Gladly).
responded in less
than 1 hour
40% Live Chat is the channel with the highest levels of customer
did not respond to satisfaction, providing shoppers with quick answers to their
an email enquiry queries and allowing them to multitask as well. Despite the
20% benefits, 70% of grocers in our research did not offer this service.
responded within
1-4 hours Results from our email enquiry testing was more positive, with
50% of grocers responding to our queries within the best
practice timeframe of 24 hours.
QualityFood.ae excelled in this area replying to an email enquiry
within 36 minutes and offering its shoppers a responsive and
helpful Live Chat. It also encourages shoppers to contact them
via Whatsapp to get real-time assistance.
16Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Delivery service
Consumers demand quick, cheap and convenient ways to receive
their ecommerce purchases.
These demands are even more prominent in urban areas such as
Punctuality of delivery Dubai, where rapid fulfilment services are facilitated by the
surge in “shared economy” transport businesses like Careem –
soon to be acquired by Uber.
20%
delivered more
Online grocers in the city have responded to these requirements
than 30 minutes with 90% offering a next-day delivery service. 100% of grocers
outside timeframe also offered a same-day delivery service, with 30% offering a
50% hyper-convenient instant delivery within one hour.
delivered within the
30% correct timeframe Despite this, many grocers could not meet their fast delivery
delivered within standards, with only 50% delivering within the agreed time slot.
30 minutes of the
timeframe One grocer called prior to delivery to warn that it would be 45
minutes late, but eventually delivered 1 hour 50 minutes late.
Despite offering one-hour slots, the grocer was unable to meet
its convenience delivery standards, frustrating the customer.
Free delivery remains a significant incentive with 73% of US
consumers admitting it greatly impacts their decision making
when shopping online (AlixPartners). 70% of grocers in our
research recognise this, offering a free delivery option to
shoppers across all areas of Dubai. 17Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Delivery experience
As well as assessing the online shopping experience, customer
service performance and fulfilment options available, it was also
important to critique the actual delivery service provided.
To achieve this, we placed a test order for each grocer and
observed the delivery process, looking for qualities that improve
the experience.
Consistent branding from the website to delivery is important
but provides a challenge for grocers that outsource their
deliveries to fulfilment partners. 70% of grocers in our research
achieved this, providing some continuity across packaging,
driver uniform and vehicle.
The delivery driver is also responsible for representing the
grocer’s brand in a flattering way. This should include helping
complete any outstanding payments, providing itemised
receipts, and delivering the order to the front door of the
customer’s property. Our research revealed that only 60% of
grocers offered this standard of delivery service.
Kibson’s (pictured) provided a best practice delivery service.
Branding was consistent, meat, frozen and fresh items were
separated in the packaging, and the driver helpfully delivered
the order to the door. 18Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Marketplaces
Alongside our research into typical online grocers, we also assessed the
grocery offerings of the two major marketplace players in the region,
Souq and Noon, against the criteria that were relevant to their ranges.
Although their online propositions are very different to the grocers in
our research, Souq especially performed well in some key criteria. PDPs
(pictured) were more thorough than any of the grocers’ in our research.
Like 30% of grocers, Souq provided nutritional and allergy details on
PDPs and, along with 60% of grocers, included customer ratings and
reviews. These ratings and reviews were used widely by customers and
could be used to sort products in search results.
However, Souq and Noon were uncompetitive in other areas. Despite
offering both online and offline payment options (like 50% of grocers),
both marketplaces charged an additional fee for offline payments,
discouraging customers that favour cash on delivery.
Also, the delivery propositions offered by both marketplaces were
unsuitable for grocery customers. Customers are unable to book
delivery time slots to conveniently align with their schedules and next
day delivery cannot be guaranteed by either marketplace.
It is clear that Souq and Noon must focus on catering for the specific
needs of the grocery customer before moving into the fresh and frozen
produce categories. 19Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019 Recommendations Make search intuitive: With 63% of online grocery journeys (IGD, UK) resulting in the use of on site search, grocers must prioritise this functionality. Focus on implementing intuitive type ahead search with simple add-to-basket buttons. Ensure customers can quickly find what they are looking by allowing them to sort and filter search result by useful criteria, such as customer ratings and product lifespan. Inspire loyalty: Online grocery customers are more likely to place regular, repeat orders, so customer loyalty is very valuable. Online grocers must encourage customers to revisit the site by making it simple to re-order their favourite items. Easy access to favourite orders/previous orders and the opportunity to book a regular delivery slot can inspire loyalty. Exciting recipe content with easy add-to-basket functionality will also encourage customers to visit the site. Make payment easy: Online payment methods and cash on delivery used widely in the UAE, so it is essential that grocers offer both options to their customers. Convenience is king: Across all retail segments, consumers increasingly choose to shop with businesses that offer flexible and convenient delivery options. In response, online grocers should aim to offer precise one-hour delivery slots throughout the day and should strive for punctuality. Provide an exceptional delivery service: The delivery driver is often the final point of contact for the brand during the customer journey. Even if your business provides an excellent online experience and helpful customer support, a poor delivery experience can prevent a customer returning to your website. Maintain consistent branding across packaging and driver uniforms, and ensure drivers are trained to represent the brand – help the customer complete any offline payments, provide itemised receipts and deliver the order to the customer’s door. 20
Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019
Performance matrix
Name Use by Ratings Search by Online & Live Responsive Same Hourly Branding
date and dietary offline Chat email day delivery on
details reviews needs payment service delivery slots delivery
Aswaaq
Carrefour
Choithrams
El Grocer
Instashop
Kibsons
Lulu
Noon N/A
Quality Food
Souq N/A
Supermart
Trolley
21Dubai Online Grocery Report 2019 About Practicology Practicology is a strategic omnichannel consultancy founded in 2009 with offices in the UK, China, Hong Kong, UAE, USA and Australia. In September 2018 we were acquired by Pattern Inc, an online marketplace specialist and one of the top 10 Amazon sellers globally. Our mission is to help our retail and consumer brand clients around the world to solve their digital and omnichannel challenges; ultimately to sell more and build profitable relationships with their customers. The retail and consumer brands we have worked with include: Adidas, Aldi, LVMH, Nike, Pandora, Reckitt Benckiser, and Tesco. We have also conducted extensive CX benchmarking research on retailers around the world on behalf of Google. In the Middle East Practicology’s consultants offer strategy complemented by ongoing support; through a range of advisory, ecommerce as a service and online marketplace selling and support services. Whether you are a GCC retailer that needs to deliver a world-class omnichannel experience, or a brand that wants to enter the region, we can help. For more information please contact us at hello@practicology.com
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